(1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to power line retaining members and image forming devices equipped with same, a power line retaining member housing and holding a power line for connecting two separate components in an image forming device.
(2) Related Art
An image forming device, such as a printer, is typically configured so power from a power supply board disposed in the device body is supplied via power lines to imaging units, which include elements such as photoreceptor drums, chargers, and developing units. Typically, the power supply board is disposed a certain distance from the imaging units due to device design. Thus, power lines that connect the power supply board and the imaging units are held by wire retaining members to avoid sagging of the power lines.
As a power line, a wire harness of wires made of copper covered with an insulating material such as resin can be used, but wire harnesses are typically costly. In particular, a high voltage power line such as one used in charging requires a thick wire diameter, increasing the significance of increased costs.
Thus, a power line less costly than a wire harness, for example a bare metal wire such as stainless steel that is not insulated, may be used to connect terminals of the power supply board and terminals of the imaging units.
When multiple bare wires between the power supply board and the imaging units are held by a power line retaining member, the bare wires are usually bent at several places as they cannot be fitted in straight lines due to the disposition of the power supply board and the imaging units.
Thus, an insulating power line retaining member made of resin or similar is pre-formed with a guide that defines grooves in bent shapes into which the bare wires are fitted, and during manufacture typically a worker performs assembly by bending and fitting the bare wires into the bent portions of corresponding grooves.
After this assembly, while bare wires are housed in grooves of the power line retaining member, a short will not occur between the bare wires and, for example, a frame of the device body.
However, due to vibrations and the like when the device is in operation, bare wires housed in the grooves of the power line retaining member may gradually lift out of and eventually leave the grooves. When this occurs, a bare wire may come into contact with the frame of the device body or another bare wire, causing a short.
As ways of preventing this lifting of bare wires, in addition to the power line retaining member, holding members may be fixed into the grooves to hold down the bare wires at intervals along the lengths of the bare wires, or the bare wires may be bonded to the power line retaining member, but these require another manufacturing step in addition to the one of fitting the bare wires into the grooves.
This technical problem is not limited to connecting the power supply board to the imaging units, and may also occur when electrically connecting any two parts of the image forming device.